The Iron King
by SeEmYaWeSoMeNeSs
Summary: Emileigh Chase has a secret destiny-one she could never have imagined... Then again. She was always a bit of a daydreamer. Ah, who cares? Follow the tales of a snarker in the same situation as Meghan... and watch the differences unfold.
1. Technology Gone Wild

**I give full credit to Julie Kagawa for the writing of **_**The Iron King**_**. I just wonder what would happen if **_**my**_** character, who you will meet, would make the same decisions and where this will lead her. I say I wonder because, see, I just created her to make someone who will make different choices… And now must build up character and then have her make decisions because of this.**

**Every other character, except new ones she may meet due to her reactions, will be the same in the book. Ethan, the mom, Oberon, ect and their supposed relationships to her.**

**Forgive me for being a loon… And for the painful similarities in the beginning. I mean, she has the same backstory… But I shall do my best to give her a different voice.**

**And yes, I'm mimicking her style on purpose. So forgive me for that, too.**

**Warning: Blatant plagiarism at parts. I won't even pretend to claim it's mine. And Emileigh is different from Meghan. It will become more apparent as we go on. I feel like making this clear because I don't want to annoy the shit out of ya'll by **_**not**_** warning you. So. Yay me.

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CHAPTER ONE

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_Technology Gone Wild

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_

When I was six, my dad performed a magic trick… And I'm pretty sure he didn't mean to. See. When I was six… My dad disappeared.

Not the running off or dying or any of those mundane shenanigans of modern times. And if he had then, damn, way to disappear in a few minutes and leave your kid scared and alone at the park. On her birthday.

If that ended up being the case, I'd just have to suck it up, cry a bit in silence, and then become a storm of bitter resentment and rebellious rage.

Thing is, I thought he had decided to play hide and seek. I looked for him, giggling and dripping a creamsickle all over the place. After a while though, I started to get scared. And I started to call out for him and when that didn't work I began to cry. And then mom decided to come get us and freaked out and, well, it all went down from there.

Oh no, poor me, I'm going to dissolve into a self-pitying mess. Not. Mom moved to start over, which was weird since she actually had so much trouble getting us down to this little hick town and even more trouble with suspicious townspeople. Then she remarried and, while people were still a little grouchy, I clearly remember one old lady giving us a basket of fruits.

And then. Ten years later… Hell came down on us like that cliché saying 'white on rice.'

* * *

MY NAME IS EMILEIGH CHASE.

Tomorrow, in other words, very soon, I will be turning sixteen.

You know, that magical time when girls become women and dance away with their prince in shining armor and noble knights and then have thousands of little babies and everyone cheers and screams and craps butterflies.

Yes, well, I was _very_ against that happening to me.

I happen to be one of those people who find happily ever after unsatisfying unless they work tooth and nail for it. The kind of person who wants to watch them suffer for their happiness and fight for their love and won't go down without kicking and screaming and ripping their enemies to shred.

I knew quite a few people who found this a little disturbing. When I told my mom this, she asked me if I was being bullied. Oh well, for each her own, I guess.

The morning before my birthday, I decided I'd look better than usual. Why? Because. I was becoming a woman. Even if I didn't want the cliché ole Disney movie as a story, I still wanted to look a little better than usual for this occasion. I guess there was a girly girl somewhere deep inside me and I had to let her out every now and then.

Of course, I opened my closet and there wasn't many things to choose from. Cargo pants, cargo shorts, camouflage, hand-me-downs, and overalls.

This was one of those moments where I wished jeans would magically appear in my wardrobe and a fairy godmother popped up, popped in a cigar, and told me:

"They'll turn into washrags at six, toots, be back before then."

I didn't ask for much.

However, I got even less than what I asked for so I threw on some of my newer clothing, tied my sneakers extra tightly, and, after brushing my hair and realizing the static was absolutely effin insane, crammed it into a sloppy bun.

Luke, my stepfather, wasn't the most exciting person in the world. He was sitting in his chair, reading the newspaper ("Five-Legged Calf Born on Patterson's Farm," oh wow), with Ethan sitting in his lap, attempting to feed his stuffed rabbit and imaginary friend, Floppy.

That rabbit, I swear, sometimes creeped me out. There was something off about it. And how much Ethan loved it and talked to it and the things it told him, while not mean or anything, were just creepy. Then again, Ethan was smart for his age.

He was also spoiled. But we got lucky. He ended up being spoiled sweet instead of rotten… kinda like good wine I guess. It was also a plus he was cuter than a puppy with large blue eyes and little brown curls. I sometimes wished I had cute brown hair but I got stuck with straight and blonde and staticky.

"Where's Mom?" I asked, raiding the cabinets for something I liked. Nothing but fiber squares and marshmallow cereals. Sighing, I picked the lesser of two evils and fixed myself a bowl of whatever nasty cereal my brother loved.

At least it was chocolate.

Luke still hadn't answered and, when I looked over to check if he heard me, he was zoned out with Ethan now sneezing and spraying Pop-Tart crumbs everywhere. Yum. "Where's Mom?" I repeated, a bit more impatient.

Luke looked up, slowly blinking, before meeting my gaze. "Oh, hello, Emy. I didn't hear you coming in." He took his time to pause and check on Ethan before asking, "What did you ask?"

I sighed and repeated it. _Again._

This time, I got the answer, "She had a meeting with some of the ladies at church." He turned back to his paper, beginning to zone out. "She won't be back for a few hours so you'll have to take the bus."

Of course I would. Always did, whether she was here or not. I had just wanted to remind her we were getting my learner's permit this weekend. I couldn't tell Luke, he was already lost in the newspaper… And probably wouldn't remember after I left. I didn't hate Luke and he wasn't a cruel stepfather. In fact, he wasn't even all that dumb. He just always looked dully surprised to see me every time I spoke.

It made me feel like an interloper.

Just as I started to mope, Beau, our german shepherd, came in and placed his big head on my lap. Relaxing, I twisted my fingers into his fur and began to pet him, using my free hand to shovel in slightly soggy kid cereal.

I was almost finished when Luke stood up, gently placing Ethan back in the seat. "All right, big guy," he paused to kiss Ethan on the forehead like a good father. "Dad has to fix the bathroom sink, so you sit here and be good. When I come back, we'll go feed the pigs, alright?"

Ethan swung his legs cutely and replied, "Kay. Floppy wants to see if Ms. Daisy has had her babies yet."

I couldn't even be creeped out at the mention of the bunny due to Luke's nauseatingly proud smile. It was sweet enough to give my diabetes, I swear.

Deciding to test my stepfather, I nonchalantly said, "Bet you don't know what tomorrow is," as I cleaned up my bowl.

He didn't even turn around. Eh. I had tried. "I don't know, Meg, if you have plans for tomorrow, talk to your mother." He snapped his fingers and Beau gave me a guilty look before licking my hand and wandering off after him. I listened forlornly to his pawsteps disappearing up the stairs before turning to face my little brother.

Ethan had on his strangely wise look. It made him look like he'd seen the world and it was kinda creepy, but I still loved him. "I know," he said softly, placing leftover Pop-Tart on the table. "Tomorrow's your birthday, isn't it? Floppy told me and I remembered."

Mom thought it was sweet when he said things like this. But, see, she also didn't have dreams of the rabbit coming out of Ethan's room, scythe in hand, eyes gleaming red, and laughing manically as it forces everyone into frilly outfits and making us dance the polka.

I realized I was strange. And had a wild imagination and even worse subconscious but that was okay because I would be the one prepared when crazy things started going down.

And then I would laugh at them all.

"Floppy says to tell you happy early birthday."

Floppy says a lot of things. However, I kept this comment to myself and, instead, opted to give his hair a good ole ruffling and heading into my room to grab my stuff. Including my iPod.

And it was _mine_ because Luke thought technology was evil and _I_ had to save up to buy it so Mom _could not_ take it away and if she even tried I'd go ninja on her. Or at least, I liked to pretend I would.

I happened to catch sight of my watch and almost had a heart attack. It took ten minutes to get to the stop and I would be running a little late even if I ran there now. Looking out the window, I noticed the gray clouds of storms to come and grabbed a jacket. Black. Nice and warm, too.

"Emy?" My eyes slid over to Ethan, noticing him clutching the rabbit plushie tighter than usual, blue eyes somber. "Can I go with you today?"

I hated when he gave me that look. "You can't go to school with me, Ethan, we've been over this already. High school isn't for four year olds."

I turned away to avoid looking at those puppy dog eyes and felt his little arms wrap around my legs. I sighed and got ready to snap at him when I met pleading eyes and a set jaw. "Please?"

No. No, no, no, no, no. You _can't_ start this right now.

"I'll be good, I promise. Take me with you? Just for today?"

Why did he have to be so cute? I hoped he used his powers for good instead of evil when he grows up. Because if he didn't, I'd have to get onto him and it's just so hard to when he turns those big blue eyes up at you. I picked him up to stall. "What's wrong, Ethan?"

"Scared." He buried his face in the crook of my neck and I felt myself giving in, smoothing out his hair.

Argh, I tried to be a hardass and then my kid brother comes and I'm, like, all puppies and rainbows. I needed to work on that. "What are you scared of?" I continued gently, not letting my inner frustrations slip out.

He shook his head. "Floppy's scared."

Again with the rabbit.

I gave the plushie an evil look and, with a sigh, asked, 'What is Floppy scared of?"

"The man in the closet."

A chill crawled up my spine but I forced the anxiety back. After all, Ethan was still only four. And he talked to a stuffed rabbit (but I had my suspicions about Floppy). He also happened to believe in monsters and bogeyman and had always come to me with these problems.

In fact, I'm not sure if Mom even knew about his scares.

Then I heard the thunder and realized my walk to the bus was already ruined, why not go check in his closet? I didn't release him and simply began to head into his room, "Let's go check for monsters."

His grip on me tightened and I moved him to one arm, using the other to fish around for the flashlight in his drawer. Of course, I had to put him down to check and did just that. I looked under the bed and in the closet, reassuring Ethan that there were no monsters.

"You think we're good now?" He nodded, giving me a cute (but small) smile. I walked out with him, about to close the door, when I saw the hat.

A bowler's hat.

I'm not entirely sure why, but I blamed the bunny.

And then I remember the time and freaked out, sprinting like there was a fire to make it out the door, slinging my bag over one shoulder and racing to the bus stop like a mad woman who used too many similes when panicking.

* * *

DESPITE HOW FAST I HAD been running, I was still soaked to the bone when I made it to the stop. It was late spring and I would've found it prettier if I wasn't so uncomfortable but, as we know, wet clothing irritates the skin after a while.

After I calmed enough not to rip my clothing off and shake like a wet dog, I realized Robbie wasn't here yet. My first thought was that the bus had left but then I realized it was _Robbie._ He probably had just decided not to come to school. Lucky.

That got me thinking about my birthday again. Robbie was an oddball prankster so he probably had something big planned. Something crazy and probably also enchanting. On my last birthday, he took me to this beautiful glen and we had a picnic… But I hadn't found it again. And, damn, I had scoured the woods for that place.

Rustling made me mind jump to weird places where horrors were real and Floppy was chasing me with a knife. So, stiffening, I convinced myself it was probably just a wild animal trying to stay dry. And then I made up a scenario where a fox had constantly tried to seek shelter only to be chased away by squirrels and such and finally fou—

A branch snapped, closer to me than the rustling. I shifted, deciding the fox was actually a raccoon and a mole or something had bit its toes until it left the bush.

Where the hell was the bus?

Time seemed to slow down and I became more and more paranoid as the _silence_ of the woods hit me. No more shuffling. No more cracking. But then I had known something was there and where it was. Plus, I felt like I was being watched.

With a deep breath, I turned, not sure what to expect, and caught the green eyes of an enormous black bird.

And then something grabbed me.

My scream could probably be honed and used as a weapon, making men beg for it to stop as they clutched their ears and spilled out their darkest secrets because, _damn_, my ears were ringing from it—Oh wait, murderers and kidnappers and… Wait.

There was suspiciously familiar sounding laughter coming from behind me.

He was so dead.

I turned around to see my best friend, Robbie Goodfell, and total jerk, practically suffocating himself with laughter. He stopped for a minute, then looked at my face, and then cracked up again.

"You are the most idiotic, preposterous, cruel, and a bunch of other nasty words jerk I have ever met! God, Robbie, you almost killed me! What if I had a heart attack and fallen to the ground in a twitchy fit." I paused to give him my angriest glare. "Oh wait. You'd still be laughing, I almost forgot."

"S-sorry, princess," he managed to gasp out, now trying to calm down. "It was just too perfect." My glare did not leave as he straightened. "Man, you have to admit, that was impressive. You must've jumped at least three fee—"

"Shut up, Robbie, or I'm sending my minions after you." I turned away with a huff, "And what have I told you about the princess thing? You know how I feel about that."

Hell, even when I was ten, I still raged at him for it.

He was just annoying like that.

"So, stop calling me that."

"Sure thing, princess."

I rolled my eyes. "If I'm a princess, than what are you supposed to be?"

With a wicked grin, he slid an arm around my shoulder and replied, "Why, that's an easy one, I'm the court jester, spreading laughter and wreaking havoc everywhere I go."

Wow. He had no trouble with that one at all. "Fine, oh fool of the court, you must obey my every whi—Hey!" He laughed and I glowered at him. Git wanted to play that? I kicked water back at him and pretty soon we were both covered in mud and that was when the bus decided to show up.

We were forced to sit in the back. Yay us.

"What are you doing after school?" Robbie asked. I decided to ignore my ever-so-defiant 'jester' and attempted to listen to the surrounding conversations. "Wanna grab a coffee later? Or we could sneak in the theater and see a movie."

I wrung out my shirt before replying, "Not today, Rob. I've got things to do, people to see, places to be—"

"And what are these things?" He asked, eyes glittering with mirth.

Very primly, like the lady I was, I replied, "I must tutor a poor wayward fellow who is wasting his youth away by vanishing into the abyss of materialism."

Even my careful phrasing didn't stop Robbie's eyes from narrowing. Couldn't say I hadn't tried. "And who is this wayward fellow?" I ignored him to look out the window but that seemed to make the situation worse. "Who is it, Emileigh?"

Awe, he had to go and use my name. "Scott Waldron."

"What?" Oh, look. Now he was gonna go and get all mad. "The jockstrap? Why? Does he need you to teach him how to read?"

Now that was just mean. "Don't be jealous." I teased.

Then Robbie had to take it seriously. I hated when he got in these moods. "Oh, of course. I'm _jealous._ Because I've always wanted the IQ of a _rock_. No wait. Now I'm insulting the rock."

I had seen enough. I rose an eyebrow and said, "Robbie, don't be an idiot. You and I both know how I feel about Scott and it is definitely not a crush. And even if I did have a crush, it would be none of your business." I gave him a fierce look and he turned away, muttering unintelligibly under his breath. Ugh, I hated arguing with him but sometimes he was just _too_ protective.

* * *

SCHOOL DRAGGED BY AND I began to feel guilty about my fight with Robbie. It wasn't like he was a ragefest for no reason, Scott did have a bad reputation and I could understand where he had been coming from. It was still a stupid reason, but not all reasons could be for the sake of the universe.

When I got to the computer room, I noticed how he was sitting and scowled. He was trying to show off his chest, had both feet up on another chair, and alluded a 'better-than-everyone-look-at-me' kind of aura.

Might as well get this over with.

I then realized the chair his feet were on was supposed to be mine. I cleared my throat to get his attention but he ignored me a while before I stepped in front of him and gave him my best teacher look.

This time, his head jerked up before turning into a lazy stare. Why thank you for finally noticing, now get your feet off my chair. Instead of saying this, though, I said, "I'm here to tutor you and that's kinda my chair so do you mind moving your feet?"

I got a blank stare in reply.

And then he removed his headphones.

"Sorry, babe," I ground my teeth at the word. Robbie could get away with calling me princess but only because I'd known him for so long. I did not want anything to do with Scott and his 'sexy' drawl. He worked it too hard if you asked me. He then gave me a once over and smirked.

A once over. And smirked.

What a total asshole.

"Are you supposed to be my tutor?"

Already fraying my patience, he was. I should go Yoda on him. See if he liked my geek talk as much as he appeared to like my looks, the superficial creep. "As stated before, yes. Emileigh Chase."

He continued to smirk at me. "Aren't you that hick girl who lives out in the swamp? Do you even know what a computer is?"

"Yes. But it seems _you_ don't." I sassed, giving him a disdainful look. He gave me a bored, slightly annoyed one in return. I was about ready to show him how to use a computer and give him some more sassing when it flickered on by itself.

And then words scrolled across the screen. It was creepy. And I found myself blaming Floppy. I always blamed Floppy. But really. The words were: _Emileigh Chase. We see you. We're coming for you._

Mixed with the nightmares, this was just too much. I mean, I'd thought he was evil since Ethan first found him at Goodwill. So, you know, of course I'd blame him. The words also filled up the screen and kept going, so the sense of doom just kept getting worse.

Scott leaned back in his seat, giving me his stupid jock glare like this was my fault. Yes. Because I'm touching the keyboard. And I also like to freak myself out. Real brilliant. "How are you doing this, freak?" I opened my mouth to retort when the screen blanked.

And then it read: _SCOTT WALDON PEEKS AT GUYS IN THE SHOWER ROOM, ROFL._

Oh great. Like I need the jock's hate.

And then, with horror, I realized that message spread to everyone around us.

Great. I was now Scott's social enemy number one. "You think that's funny, swamp girl? Do you?" Nope. Not at all. Can you not see how pale my face is right now, you pompous dickwad? "Just wait. I'll show you funny. You just dug your own grace, bitch."

He stormed out the room as everyone cheered and gave me thumbs up. I felt kind of sick. And then the computer flickered off and I wanted to punch the computer.

And then I saw a creepy black thing. It looked emaciated, like it hadn't eaten in months, and had huge bat ears with long, thin arms and eerie green eyes. It grinned, teeth glowing blue, and scampered off.

It took a minute to sink in. And then I paled and fled the room, unsure if I had been hallucinating or if I had seen something more horrifying than my imagination could make up.

In fact, I was still running down the hall when I passed Robbie. He started out with "Hey, princess" and ended with, "Hey, where are you going?" After I slowed down to let him catch up, I realized he was right beside me. "That great of a session, eh?"

"Absolutely wonderful." I spat. "So wonderful, I could die tonight and be happy. Actually, how about you kill me so I don't, you know, get disappointed tomorrow or something when life comes crashing down?"

His expression suggested he contemplated on teasing me as he was still grinning, "I _could_ say I told you so—" The sheer amount of murder in my eyes was probably enough to tell him that maybe a joke wasn't the best idea. "—but I won't. Because…" He fought back laughter and tried to keep a straight. "That would be wrong."

"Go ahead and laugh, you git." He was smart. He kept his face expression as almost-straight-but-obviously-amused. "What were you doing here, anyway? Stalking me? I already told you I wasn't interested in the jerk."

He coughed, face expression changing to a more neutral one as he took a sip of root beer. I gave him a look and he pulled out another one, holding out his peace offering.

I accepted it, opened it, and took a big swig out of it before pointing out, "You still haven't answered, Rob. Don't think you get away that easily."

He then brightened, "Hey, I was wondering, what are you doing for your birthday tomorrow?"

Nice cover up, I thought sarcastically, taking a sip. "I don't know. I bet ya mom and dad both forgot and the only ones who seems to remember is _Floppy_ and Ethan. Floppy. I swear that bunny gets creepier every time I think about it. He's four and it still talks to him."

He laughed, "Don't tell me you never had imaginary friends, princess." I shot him a nasty look and pointed my opened root beer bottle at him menacingly. "Okay, okay, I'll leave you alone for now…" He grinned. "I swiped a bottle of champagne from the cabinet." He waggled his eyebrows to add to the effect. "How about we celebrate it in style?"

I thought a flat "What" sufficed. But then decided to elaborate, "And when did I start drinking? Because I don't remember ever say—"

"Relax, princess." He teased, "Just a little won't kill you."

I glared at him and he continued to smile. I sighed. "Fine. But I'm only trying a sip. And only because now you've gone and made me curious." I eyed him with distrust, "You aren't going to slip something in my drink to make me 'forget' everything that happens, right?"

His expression faltered but then he laughed, "Like a date rape drug? Why, princess, who knew you thought of things like that?" He placed a hand on my shoulder, "I promise not to attempt rape on your birthday, princess. Though any time after that… Not so sure. I live in the now, you know."

I pushed his hand off and rolled my eyes, but my lips still twitched up into a smile. "You are such a dork." He continued to walk with me and I slipped into a kind of depression without noticing.

Robbie noticed.

He stopped us, head tilting. "You okay, princess?"

What could I tell him? That I was seeing bogeymen, computers were trying to take over my life, and that I was pretty much losing my mind? Nope. I'd get no sympathy from him. In fact, if I didn't know better, I'd say he was the reason these things were happening.

"Just tired." I shrugged and gave him a halfsmile. "Tomorrow's a big day, you know, got to be fully prepared for it. Be ready for a full on rockout tomorrow. We're going to have to defeat evil overlords' in the ass. And then, for good measure, make them do the polka."

His eyes lit up. "The polka?"

I nodded. "The polka."

He laughed, affectionately messing up my hair. "Well, see you then, princess. I'll be sure to wear my Robin Hood hat if you'll be my Lady Marian."

I smacked his arm but he won a laugh. But then my mirth vanished when I realized I'd be sitting out in the rain for a half hour. And then riding home with mom. And when she finally pulled up, the front seat was filled with crap so I had to get into the back.

"Emy, you're sopping wet!" Yep. Glad you noticed. It's the newest fashion, you know. "Don't sit on the upholstery—get a towel or something. Didn't you pack un umbrella?"

Why yes. Yes I did. It's why I'm soaked to the bones. However, I kept my snark to myself and used a few old newspapers to put something between her precious seats and my rain-drenched behind.

While trying to figure out where people got the notion I looked like mom, I remembered my earlier question this morning. "We are still getting my permit this weekend, right, Mom?"

She sighed. That wasn't a good sign. "I don't know… I've got a lot of work this week and your father wants me to help him fix the barn. Maybe next week."

"Not to sound rude, but could you call him Luke for me? I don't like replacing dad."

"Emileigh, please, I've had a long day." It was a simple request, I failed to see how this was so tiring. It was then, by looking into the rearview mirror, that I noticed just how red mom's eyes were. Had she been crying?

"Mom, did… Did something happen?" I tried to be careful. Mom didn't cry easily and I was probably already on thin ice if it was recent.

She hesitated for so long I thought she wasn't going to explain. Then, she finally said, "There was an… accident at home." I wasn't sure why but this made my stomach twist. "Your fa—Luke. Luke had to take Ethan to the hospital the afternoon." She stopped here to blink rapidly and for a minute, I was in blind panic.

Ethan was hurt? Why? How? Had there really been a man in his closet? Had I left him to get hurt just because I had been in a rush to get—

My thoughts were cut off by her next words. "Beau attacked him."

"_What?_" I couldn't believe that. I was much more willing to believe radioactive alien spiders had come down and tried to eat him than Beau, our gentle herding dog, had done anything of the sort. Hell, Ethan used to stick his head in Beau's mouth and Beau would take it and sometimes just back up or headbutt him away.

Mom continued as if I hadn't just shouted. "Ethan's going to be okay. Very shaken up, but nothing too bad."

"What happened? W… why did Beau attack him?"

I still couldn't imagine it. I was now thinking that maybe Floppy had finally given up his masquerade to frame out precious dog so then no one could blame him for a failed attempt at killing my brother.

Mom shook her head, completely oblivious to my inner thoughts. "I don't know. Luke saw Beau run up the stairs, and then heard Ethan screaming. When he got to his room, he found the dog dragging Ethan across the floor. His face was badly scratched and there were bite marks on his arms."

Oh my God.

I pictured little Ethan. And how terrified he was. But I still couldn't picture Beau doing that. "A-are you sure it was Beau? How do we know he wasn't protecting Ethan?"

Mom pressed her lips together and I watched her eyes focus on the road. My blood ran cold.

"Mom. What's going to happen to Beau?"

Her eyes filled with tears and I found that I wanted to cry, too. I already knew what she was going to say before it came out. "We can't have a dangerous dog running around, Emy."

No.

"If Ethan asks, tell him we found Beau another home." She gripped the steering wheel harder as I tried not to let the tears building up in my eyes out. "It's for the safety of the family, Emileigh. Don't blame your fa—Luke. But, after Luke brought Ethan home, he took Beau to the pound."


	2. Jokes On Me

**Sorry it took so long, everyone! For some odd reason, fanfiction wasn't letting me update. Which is frustrating, let me tell you. I apologize for the quality of this chapter, I don't think it's entirely all that good and, like the first one, most of it is taken directly from the book with snarky little Emileigh having to tolerate the odd actions. Because, as seen in chapter one, she doesn't care for Scott.**

**Anyway, if anyone is still willing to read, here's the lovely chapter two. Chapter Three will have more notable differences I think. It's planned to anyway.**

**Review Replies:**

**Ringo Nik: Haha, her interactions with Ash will be fun to write, I think. Even if she finds him attractive, she'd be more annoyed with that than starstruck. And I hope to take it into a different direction than the original, it'll still have to have many of the same events, it _is_ supposed to be the same plot. Emileigh's just an entirely different character than Meghan.**

**Evie: Here's the update! Sorry it took so long! Glad you like it.**

**Angel of Hell17: Awe, thanks, hopefully you'll still love it as it continues.

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CHAPTER TWO

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* * *

Jokes on Me

* * *

_

At dinner, I was fuming. Mostly because they refused to go back to the pound to get Beau. And I wasn't dropping the issue. But they were ignoring me to talk about trivial things like the newspaper and weather and all that nonsense while Ethan stared in silence, clutching the stuffed rabbit close to his chest.

I don't think they realized it. But it was pissing me off.

"Mom, we have to go back and get him! Just one slip up and you freak out? He's been loyal to us this whole time! Maybe he thought Ethan was in trouble!"

They continued to ignore me. It actually became painful to sit at the table without Beau digging around for crumbs and I left in a huff, slamming my door shut behind me. I threw myself at the bed and assaulted it before settling out.

But that only made me think of Beau. And how he'd come up and curl beside me, making sure I was safe and happy.

That was all he had ever done.

Protect us.

It wasn't _right_ to take him to the pound. And now that he was gone, the house felt empty and I felt more alone than I had in this town for a while. I wanted to call Robbie and rant and rave and throw a fit but he didn't even have a homephone. So I'd have to settle with talking to him tomorrow and bemoaning my poor dog's absence.

There was a timid knock on the door and, before I could answer, Ethan peeked in.

I wiped away the rest of my tears and sat up, patting a place beside me. He crawled up into my lap instead, holding Floppy tightly. "What's wrong?" I asked gently although I could guess what his answer would be.

"Mommy and Daddy sent Beau away," he replied, a small hiccup shaking his body. I wrapped my arms around him protectively and sighed.

However, he seemed to be waiting for some kind of answer, so I said, "They think they have to. They think he hurt you." I paused. "Did he hurt you, Ethan?"

Ethan twisted in his spot to give me wide, teary eyes. "Beau didn't bite me." Ha, I was right. We need to go back _right now_ and get him because, damn it, he was family, too. However, looking in Ethan's eyes took the triumph away… He had a look of understanding far too old for his young face. "Beau didn't hurt me. Beau was trying to save me from the man in the closet."

Goosebumps crawled up my arm.

Gently, I pried. "Why didn't you tell mom and dad?"

"They're grown ups," Ethan said, as if it was perfectly clear. "They won't believe me. They can't see the monsters—"

I heard my voice quiver, "Ethan, there aren't monster—"

"Yes, there are!" He scowled, raising his voice. "I've seen them. They talk to me. They say the king wants to see me." The feeling of dread curling in my stomach began to grow and I was almost pulled into believing him. But I had checked this morning. I had and there had been no one else in the closet.

I opened my mouth to explain this when he wiggled from my arms to point at the bandaged one.

He had a gleam in his eyes now, determined to tell his story. "The man in the closet grabbed me here. He was pulling me under the bed when Beau came in and scared him off." Then, he gave me a grave expression, as If he was about to tell me about a _funeral_ of some kind. "Floppy says you can see them. If you try hard enough."

My attention turned to the stuffed rabbit, blood rushing in my ears. Floppy told him a lot of things, Floppy was creepy. I didn't like Floppy. All my conspiracies piled up in my mind and I bit my lip.

Ethan didn't seem to notice my discomfort. "You can see through the mist and glamour, Floppy says so."

I opened my mouth, I'm not entire sure what I was about to say, but then mom's voice floated through the door, "Ethan? Are you in here?" She came and saw us together, offering us a tentative smile. I scowled back at her. "Ethan, honey, it's time to get ready for bed. It's been a long day."

Ethan leapt down, padding up behind her to clutch her hand. "Can I sleep with you and Daddy?"

"Oh, I guess so. But just for tonight."

I waited for their footsteps to fade before kicking the door shut and huddling up under the covers. Who was I supposed to believe? I _knew_ Beau didn't bite him. I knew it. Beau wouldn't. But I wasn't sure if I could believe his story either.

I'm not sure I fell asleep, but I remember dreaming about Floppy. In this dream, he wasn't evil like in all the others. I dreamt I woke up and talked to him. He wanted to warn me… or maybe he was trying to help me. I remember he had been talking in the same grave tone as Ethan when he had been telling me I could see the monsters.

I think I promised him something.

But when I woke up, that was all I could remember. Even though I tried to remember _what_ I had promised and what it had told me, I drew up blank. I should've known this was some kind of warning.

* * *

I WOKE UP TO THE sound of rain drumming against the roof. I could already tell this would be another wonderful birthday. I wondered if I could play sick so I wouldn't have to go to school. It would be a pain to make up the work but even worse to go back and face an angry jock.

I had a feeling he was going to try something today. He didn't seem like the patient type.

"Emileigh?" I ignored her, burrowing under the covers and resenting her. Beau was gone and I decided I wasn't getting up without him. Her tone turned matter of fact, "You're going to miss the bus and I'm not driving you to school."

Seems like she wasn't even going to try to make up with me. Well, good, I didn't want to feel guilty after dishing out my enraged speech to Robbie. I kicked off the covers and decided I didn't want to be pretty today and threw on some random clothing and let my hair be a crazy static mess.

I ran into her when I was storming through the kitchen and she offered, "I was thinking, after I pick you up today, we could go get your permit." She paused just as I got my hopes up. "Oh wait, you'll have to ride the bus back. But I'll take you as soon as you get here."

Of course.

However, it looked like she was trying harder than before and I reluctantly agreed, letting her give me a hug before trying to stuff my homework into my backpack. Ethan approached timidly and I looked up for a second before asking, "What's up, squirt?"

He beamed and stepped forward, holding out a card. It was colored in crayons with a smiley-faced sun over a little house with smoke curling from the roof. "Happy birthday, Emileigh! See how I remembered?"

Okay. I couldn't stay all resentful when he was looking at me like that. I hugged him fiercely before opening it and a cute drawing of our family smiled up at me—he had even drawn Beau. Seeing this forced me to swallow back another fit of tears and I gave him a smile.

"Do you like it?" He asked, suddenly worried.

"No." His face fell and I finished with, "I _love_ it."

It was worth it to see his face light up again.

"In fact, I think it needs to go on the refrigerator so everyone can see it. Why don't you go do that while I finish packing?" He nodded cheerfully and scampered off, clutching it to his chest, and lifted my spirits in the process. Maybe today wasn't going to be the most awful thing ever.

* * *

"SO, YOUR MOM IS TAKING you to get your permit, today?" Robbie asked. Of course, he asked this just as we turned into the parking lot of the school. Oh well, still love him. "Good! Then you can start driving us to the movies and to your place—"

"Rob, honey, it's only a permit." He didn't seem to get what I meant. "I can't take anyone anywhere. It's just so I can legally practice driving." I didn't wait to see his reply and instead rushed out of the bus. It was a nice thought. Not having to use the bus one day. Might be another lifetime before it happened but a girl can dream.

And then Scott came over. I was immediately on guard and gave him a distrusting look, looking back to watch for Robbie. "Hey." I ignored him. "Um… What was your name again?"

I cast aside any logical reason for nervousness and decided it was probably because Robbie could be scary when he wanted to. "I'm not telling you again." I adjusted my teacher tone. "I already know you don't like me, there's no need for you to throw my name around."

He frowned. "Look, I feel bad for the way I treated you yesterday. It was uncalled for. I'm sorry."

I continued to eye him guardedly but replied, "Emileigh."

He grinned, "Emileigh."

"Yes. Emileigh Chase." I rose an eyebrow and noticed Robbie walking off, so I grabbed him. At this time, Scott looked over at his friends before looking back at me and cast Robbie a look.

Robbie gave him one right back.

He was such a jealous person.

"Hey, I haven't been able to stop thinking about what all I said. I was a real jerk and I'd like to make it up to you. Do…" He paused, and I shared a look with Robbie. Unsure of whether or not to believe Scott's change of heart. "Do you want to eat lunch with me?"

"As nice as that would be," I replied impassively, slipping an arm around Robbie. Who, to my annoyance, slipped an arm right back. Sometimes. "I'm eating with Robbie. But thank you for the offer."

He looked puzzled.

Robbie decided to clear it up, "That was a no." Obviously I had said the right thing because he seemed almost _giddy_. "But she might talk to you later if you're nice."

I jabbed him in the side and he let go. Scott looked put out before grinning, "Well, I guess I'll see you around. Hey, real quick, say cheese!"

Before I had time to react, he had grabbed me and brought me to his side as one of his friends leapt forward and took a picture with his phone. He let go and, still grinning, left with his friends.

Robbie looked mad.

With a sigh, I poked his arm. "Don't worry about it. Whatever just happened was absolutely ridiculous and I don't even know what to think of it. We have to g—Well. _I_ have to get to class, Mr. Slacker."

He cast a look over his shoulder and said something about checking up on someone and, rolling my eyes, I headed to class alone.

* * *

WHEN THE LUNCH BELL RANG, I decided maybe turning down Scott's attempt at an apology was a bad idea. But it had seemed completely false to me so I wasn't entirely sure what to do in this situation.

I was packing my stuff when I felt the eyes on my back and whirled around.

But it was just Robbie.

"Do you _always_ have to creep up behind me? Because one of these days I'm going to haul off and rabbit punch you or something." He didn't look the least bit fazed, just amused. "I'm serious."

However, I was smiling at him, dang it, so it ruined the effect. "And here I was thinking we had a date today."

I smacked his arm and was about to make some other comment when I noticed his expression change. "Hey, is something bothering you?"

His slightly off expression turned serious. "This is bad, I can feel it. Jockstrap is up to something-he and his buddies were hanging around the yearbook department for a long time after he talked to you. I don't like it."

And now, neither did I.

"Did you hear anything they said?" He shook his head. "Dang. Okay, well, let's just go on in. If they do anything, hey, it can't be that bad. Besides that, you're my cover, right?"

He smirked, "Of course."

"Then we're good."

I was almost out the door when he grabbed my wrist. Blinking, I turned back to face him. "And I'll always cover you, kay?" I blinked. "Just remember that for me."

That startled a laugh out of me, "Stop acting like the world's caving in. It's my birthday. I've been a good kid, I don't think anything too bad will happen to me. And you've always been there." And when I thought about it, he really had. Sometimes he'd been there too much. Like when I first started my period and freaked out. Because then he freaked out.

It had been a mess. And it was to never be repeated again.

The cafeteria was its normal self. No groups seemed disturbed as they had their gangs and friends. Robbie took his place beside me and though he _seemed_ to be fine, he was tense. Scott caught my eye and gave me a smile, before pressing a button on his iPhone.

I blinked, confused. And then a phone nearby rang. I started to get that sinking feeling one finds themselves experiencing when something bad was happening and they hadn't acknowledged it consciously yet.

I ignored the now blossoming snickering but found myself shrinking closer to Robbie as more phones rang around us.

I had a feeling they were whispering and giggly about me.

A hand smacked my butt and I cried out, whirling around to see Dan Ottoman from band giving me a leer. "Hey, hot cheeks! Never took you for a player, girl." Player of what exactly? I moved even closer to Robbie. "Come down to the band sometime, I've got a flute you can play."

I had the feeling this was some kind of sick innuendo. "I'd be more inclined to agree if I knew what the hell you were talking about." He snickered and showed his phone. At first, I was going to chew him out... Then I saw the message.

"_How is Emileigh Chase like a cold beer?" _Scrolled agross in bright yellow letters. Then it vanished and a picture popped up.

Me. Me and Scott in the parking lot. Only, instead of me being fully clothed like I was _pretty_ sure I had been, it looked like they had not only photoshopped Robbie out, but also _my clothing._ The body they had used, however, was insanely thin and featureless and kind of ruined the effect for me.

Then the words bothered me again. "_She's smooth and goes down easy!" _

At first, I gaped. And then, with a snarl, I turned and marched over to Scott's table, ignoring the surrounding people. "Real impressive, really. You should get some kind of award for that little text. One problem."

I paused and watched the smirk waver.

"I have _breasts. _Though you probably don't know what those are. Wonder who that girl is." Of course, this was all my wounded pride had as a comeback and I marched out of the cafeteria, dragging Robbie behind me. "We aren't eating today, Rob. I lost my appetit-" I stopped after we had made it a few feet down the halls. "You know... I think I'll go to the nurse's. It's about time your habits got to me... Think you could get my work?"

He had on a faintly dark expression but nodded, walking with me until I reached the door. I shooed him away, adopted my best sick face (not that it was hard with how I was feeling), and peeked in. The look she gave me told she wasn't fooling around. "Well now, Ms. Chase, what are you doing here?"

"I have a stomachache." I complained. "Can I lie down for a minute or two?"

Her eyes softened a little. "Of course, Ms. Chase. There are some cots in the back. I'll bring you something to help you feel better."

Eh. I had expected a tougher challenge to that. Nodding, I stepped in and noticed that there didn't seem to be any other kids in. It was a bit comforting... I didn't want to catch an actual illness. Just as I finished getting comfortable, the nurse returned with a steaming Dixie cup.

"Take this, you'll feel better." I eyed it, unsure. I wasn't actually sick so what if it did something? A side effect? However, she gave me a smile and left and I decided to go ahead and drink it. It was incredible. Richer than chocolate but with a slightly bitter tinge to it. In fact, it was good enough that I just gulped it down.

Moments after, I decided maybe a quick doze wouldn't be too bad and fell asleep, forgetting to put the empty cup down.

* * *

I AWOKE TO LOW VOICES.

The tones weren't reassuring. They reminded me of when mom and Luke were talking about me after I did something 'troubling.'

Joy.

I tried to move but, oh look, I couldn't. In fact, my eyes felt like they were being pushed down-it wasn't very comfortable. I turned my head and noticed two shadows. At least it was only two. If it had been a crowd, I might've had to start a riot, immobile or not.

"Don't do anything reckless," it was the nurse, I was finally able to tell. Hmm. That drink she gave me was good, although obviously did something. Maybe it was _supposed_ to make a person go to sleep? Then maybe I could have more before I sleep tonight. "Remember, your duty is to watch the girl. You must not to anything that will draw attention."

Stalker?

What?

"Me?" Hmm. Maybe not stalker. The voice was familiar. Very familiar. Very, very, very fa-Dang it, why couldn't I draw a name? "Draw attention to myself? Would I do such a thing?"

Whoever it was, I could tell the answer was 'yes.'

The nurse also seemed to agree that it was worthy of sarcasm and snorted. "If the entire cheerleading squad turn into mice, Robin, I will be very upset with you. Mortal adolescents are blind and cruel."

Well, thanks, miss. Glad to see you call us 'mortals' and 'adolescents' and not even just teenagers in a contemptuous tone. Taking sarcasm a little too far was possible.

"You know that. You mustn't take revenge, no matter how you feel for the girl. Especially now. There are more worrying things on the move." And now I was confused again. I was about to just give up and blame it on the drink. Maybe it _was_ a freaky drug and I was hallucinating or having kooky dreams.

The shadows were starting to have more shape, now that my eyes could focus. There was one unnaturally small shadow-why hadn't I noticed that before?-and the other one was a pretty okay height. But looked like it had something coming out of the head.

That was it.

I was drugged.

End of story.

The taller shadow sighed and sat down. "I've heard the same." Oh look, he'd mellowed. Haha, drugs. Nice try. Still know you're there. "Dark rumors are stirring. The Courts are restless." Courts? Like... Judges and juries and all that? Haha, too many discussions over the law in history it seemed. "Seems like something is out there that has both of them scared."

Only two? Boo. How boring for a drug-induced hallucination. Now I knew for sure I didn't want to do drugs. If this was all they had... Then they definitely weren't worth it.

"Which is why you must continue to be both her shield and her guardian."

Okay, the mental image of some man turning into a shield and a girl charging in with him on her arm as he complained about having to protect her with his own sword was kind of funny, but I could think up those things on my own.

"I'm surprised you haven't given her the mistwine yet. She is sixteen today. The veil is beginning to lift." Oooh. Ominous foreshadowing. I probably won't be out of it long enough to see the conclusion of the story. Sounded interesting though.

Speaking of veils, I wished I could move mine and see who the familiar voice was. It was bothering me that I couldn't figure it out. "I know, I know. I'm getting to it." There was a pause, some ruffling, and his shadow bent over some. "I'll take care of that later this afternoon. How is she?"

Hmm. I will pretend that she is me and I will reply with 'Just peachy, now screw off.'

But alas.

My mouth did not open and these words did not come out.

Instead, the nurse said, "Resting. Poor thing, she was traumatized." No. I was pretty sure I hadn't acted that way in the least. Sick? Yes. But. That was also acting. Although my stomach had been hurting from the whole 'oh my God, people are such retards.' "I gave her a mild sleeping potion. It should knock her out until she goes home."

Except, hahaha, I'm up right now. Jokes on you! Seems you're getting a lot wrong today.

Familiar voice chuckled. It was a familiar chuckle, too.

Damn it.

Who was it?

"The last kid who drank one of your 'mild' sleep potions didn't wake up for two weeks." Whoa. Strong stuff. Maybe I should go to sleep so as to not waste the potion. "You're one to talk about being inconspicuous."

I wanted to think something snarky, but I was starting to lose focus. I was pretty sure I heard something about fathers and daughters and fines but I wasn't entirely sure because...

It seems it was still nap time.

* * *

"EMILEIGH!"

Someone was shaking me awake. With a sqawk, I tried to open my eyes but they were crusted with nasty stuff so I had to rub at them furiously until I could move my eyes without feeling like they were covered in sand. Once they were taken care of, I gave him a confused glare.

For a second there, I thought he looked worried. But then he was grinning and being a douche. "Wakey, wakey, sleeping beauty." I smacked his arm but this did nothing but bring out a chuckle. "Lucky you, school is out. It's time to go home."

"Yeah, well, lucky you, I'm too disoriented to sock you." I did my best to look menacing.

He just snorted and pulled me to my feet. "Here." He handed my my backpack and then one-upped me. "Lucky you," oh that stupid little smirk was tauting me, "I got notes for all the classes you missed after lunch."

Oh. Oh yay.

"I forgive you for being a douche." I replied, giving him a quick hug. "My douche in shining armor! Whatever will I do without you?"

He chuckled, "Probably die. But you might make it to rock bottom and hang out there a couple days first." Pfft. Ruining the moment. I crossed my arms and then remember lunch and, well damn, I had to call mom.

"Mom has to pick me up. There's no way I'm riding the bus."

"Look, Emileigh," I met his eyes and he continued, "it's not _that_ big of a deal. It'll blow over."

"Yes. It'll blow over. It'll blow over faster if I slink out of everyone's life and vanish off the face of the planet for a good month or so." I sunk back onto the cot. "I mean, I shouldn't really even give a crap what people think, but to have a whole _herd_ of snickering imbeciles reminding me of it... I'm just glad you were there. It would've been worse for me if you hadn't."

I drew my knees up to my chest, being entirely unladylike, and then ducked my head down. I was an Emileigh turtle, the rarest kind.

Stupid tears sprung into my eyes but I wasn't going to cry. I refused. "It's my birthday." I grumbled. "I knew it wasn't going to be the best sweet sixteen in the world, but this is a little too much even for me."

Robbie sighed and, after I heard a thump, pulled me into another hug. This one lasted a lot longer and was much more comforting. I clung to his shirt and pressed my ear to his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

Had he _run_ to the clinic to wake me up?

Sounded like he'd been in a race, dear lord.

His voice distracted me before I could tease him. "Come on." He dragged me up with him and I let go, sliding back to stretch a bit and rub at my eyes. Moist, but I hadn't let any tears escape. "You can do this. And I promise, no one will care about what happened today. By tomorrow, everyone will have forgotten about it."

See, those words were comforting and I was glad the trickster was showing his compassion, but honestly, it didn't work like that. It would at least be the talk of the month, if not more. And definitely would stay unless something else bad happened to someone else and I wasn't bitter enough to curse others all the way yet.

"Besides, don't you have a driver's permit to get?"

Oh dang. He knew me so well.

Curse him for being my best friend!

I left the nurse's office with him and he held my hand. Literally. It was comforting though, so I didn't really mind. It wasn't awkward with him because, well, there was no way it had the same implications. It was just him protecting me... like he usually was.

Hmm. Mr. Tricker King Robbie Goodfell was getting soft. I was kind of glad though. It let me know that, yes, he was actually my friend and not just preying on me by gaining my trust and then turning on me and making me the butt of some very cruel joke. I'd had nightmares about that before, actually.

We started to head near a group of girls. "Just stick close." He didn't have to tell me that. I did, however, to show him I listened, leaned closer. Angie and a few of her posse were standing around the lockers being their usual selves. My steps slowed and Robbie squeezed my hand, "It's okay. Don't let go of me, and don't say anything to anyone. They won't even notice we're here."

I waited for them to say something _to_ me. But they honestly didn't seem to know I was there. Angie, though, was talking about me. "And then she, like, clung to that Robbie kid. And I was, like, ohmygawd, she's _such_ a _whore_. But what can you expect from an inbred hillbilly?" Then her voice got all quiet like there were other people in the hall.

Maybe she did know we were here and she was being cruel?

"I heard her mom has, like, an unnatural obsession with pigs... If you know what I mean." They all laughed. _They all laughed_. I wanted to ring their little necks. I wanted to rant and rage and defend my mother because, despite sometimes annoying the crap out of me, she was my mom and _no one_ could talk about her like that.

Robbie didn't let me snap. He tightened his grip and pulled me away. But he muttered something as he walked and, at first, I thought it was to comfort me. But then the air _rippled_, reminding me of thunder only without the sound. Just that feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Behind us, Angie began to scream.

I know I had just been wishing her ill but the sounds of actual screaming were much different than those fantasized and I no longer wanted _anything_ to happen to her.

I tried to turn back. To see what had her screaming. To reassure myself she was just being a drama queen. But Robbie yanked and pulled me through the crowd, not letting me look, weaving us through the other students. They were all looking back.

I whirled my head around, letting Robbie drag me away, and for a second, I saw Angie covering her nose with her hand, eyes wide... And her screams were sounding more and more like the squeals of a pig.


End file.
